A specialised bone found in vertebrate animals. There are usually many of these vertebrae, stacked in a column on top of each other, and called a spine or backbone. They are designed for many purposes; they provide strong protection to the nerve bundles of the spinal cord that runs up a hole through each vertebra. They also act as the main load-carrying structure of the body, distributing weight equally to all of the limbs that touch the ground and bracing the animal for movement. Cushioned by pads of cartilage between each one, they absorb the shock of movement or falling to a certain extent, and can also slide over each other in a limited fashion to provide twisting and curling movement. If an animal is threatened, it may curl into a ball; at this point, the vertebral column (along with ribs and pelvis) helps to protect the delicate internal organs from attack.
Any of the single bones or segments of the spinal column. Each vertebra is a composite of several bony masses and processes including the facet, lamina, spinous process, transverse process, pedicle, vertebral body and uncinate process. Vertebra are numbered according to their region and location from a superior direction, i.e., C5 is the fifth cervical vertebra from the skull.
An individual segment of the backbone of a fish.
One of the 33 bony segments that comprise spinal column. There are 7 vertebrae in the cervical region of the spine, 12 in the thoracic, 5 in the lumbar, 5 in the sacral, and 4 in the coccyx. The plural of vertebra is vertebrae.
Any of the individual bones of the spinal column.
one of the bony segments of the spinal column
Latin verto = I turn; hence, one of the movable bones of the backbone which seems to be shaped for rotation.
Individual bones which make up the spinal column
a bone in the neck or spine
Interconnected bones of the spinal column.
One of the twenty-four (24) bones that make up the spine. There are three types: cervical (seven in number), thoracic (twelve), and lumbar (five), with each section possessing unique characteristics. The sacral vertebrae are fused in one bone.
One of a chain of bones that make up the backbone. (plural: vertebrae)
(plural VERTEBRAE). A segment or bone of the spinal column.
one of 33 bones that form the spinal column, they are divided into 7 cervical, 12 thoracic, 5 lumbar, 5 sacral, and 4 coccygeal. Only the top 24 bones are moveable.
individual bones (33 human) of the axial skeleton that enclose the spinal cord and form, with the intervertebral discs, the vertebral column. Vertebra bodies form first by endochondrial ossification of segmental sclerotomal mesenchyme which in turn came from pairs of somites. (mesoderm - para-axial mesoderm - somites - paired sclerotome - vertebral body) During vertebra formation there is a "segmental shift" out of register with the original somites. In development, the vertebral arch (enclosing the spinal cord) remains open dorsally and tied by a ligament to allow growth of the spinal cord. (More? Musculoskeletal Notes | Axial Skeleton)
Bony segment of the spine that encircles and helps protect the spinal cord and nerves. The plural of vertebra is vertebrae.
Each bone in the spine is called a vertebra, which is made up of two main sections. The anterior section, which is closest to the front of the body, is shaped like a drum. The posterior, or back section, consists of a tube-shaped bone structure called the lamina. (The lamina, which are stacked one on top of the other, form the spinal canal.) Seven projections, called processes, emerge from the lamina of each vertebra. The top 7 vertebrae are called the cervical vertebrae and are numbered: C1 to C7. The next 12 - each attached to a pair of ribs - are called the thoracic vertebrae: T1 to T12. The lowest 5 are called the lumbar vertebrae - L1 to L5. This is where the majority of back problems occur.
One of the 33 bones that make up the spine. They comprise of a weight bearing 'body' at the front, and spinous processes at the back which act as attachment points for muscles.
A bone in the spine that, with 23 other vertebrae, the sacrum and coccyx makes up the vertebral or spinal column. The vertebral column houses and protects the spinal cord.
One of the bones that extend from the upper neck to the pelvic level and serve to enclose and protect the spinal cord.
Any of the thirty-three bones of the spinal column
One of the 33 bones of the spinal column. A cervical, thoracic, or lumbar vertebra has a cylindrically-shaped bony anteriorly and a neural arch posteriorly (composed primarily of the laminae and pedicles as well as the other structures in the posterior aspect of the vertebra) that protects the spinal cord. The plural of vertebra is vertebrae.
one of the 33 bones that form the spinal column.
A bone of the spinal column. There are five (5) lumbar vertebrae.
segment of the spinal column, noted as region plus number (C = cervical, T = thoracic, L = Lumbar)
Vertebra refers to any of the 33 bones of the spinal column.
A component of the vertebral column, or backbone, found in vertebrates.
any one of the 33 bony segments that make up the spinal column.
A bone of the spine. There are seven (7) cervical vertebrae, twelve (12) thoracic vertebrae and five (5) lumbar vertebrae, as well as those that make up the sacrum and the coccyx.
The spine is made up of many vertebrae. The largest ever found were neck vertebrae that belonged to the long-necked dinosaur Seismosaurus; they are over 6 feet (1.8 m) long.
One of 33 bony segments that form the spinal column. There are 7 cervical, 12 thoracic, 5 lumbar, 5 sacral (fused into one sacrum bone) and 4 coccygeal (fused into one coccyx bone).
(plural vertebrae) - one of many small bones that make up the spine. The spinal cord runs through the vertebrae.
Vertebrae (singular: vertebra) are the individual irregular bones that make up the vertebral column (aka spine) — a flexuous and flexible column. There are normally thirty-three (33) vertebrae in humans, including the five that are fused to form the sacrum (the others are separated by intervertebral discs) and the four coccygeal bones which form the tailbone. The upper three regions comprise the remaining 24, and are grouped under the names cervical (7 vertebrae), thoracic (12 vertebrae) and lumbar (5 vertebrae), according to the regions they occupy.